Abuja — The Standards Organisation of Nigeria, SON, has celebrated the 2026 World Standards Day with a call for stronger commitment to quality and clean energy.

‎The celebration held at Wuse Market, Abuja, with the theme “Shared Vision for a Better World – Spotlight on SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy.”

The Director-General of SON, Dr. Ifeanyi Chukwunonso Okeke, who declared the event open, said standards go beyond technical documents.

‎”Standards are not simply technical requirements contained in a document,” he said.

‎”They are instruments for building trust, protecting consumers, supporting businesses, facilitating trade and strengthening national development,” he said.

Okeke said the theme speaks directly to one of Nigeria’s biggest challenges and opportunities — access to affordable, reliable and clean energy.

‎He said without standards, Nigeria cannot achieve affordable and reliable energy.

‎He said SON has continued to strengthen standards across critical sectors including energy management, transportation, food safety and health care.

He said SON has developed standards to support the Federal Government’s energy transition to Compressed Natural Gas, CNG.

“We have standards across the CNG ecosystem,” he said.

He said SON approved 80 standards in 2024 covering CNG conversion kits, electrical connections, vehicle diagnostics, roadworthiness, vehicle safety, storage vessels and refuelling stations.

“When you are saying fuel is expensive, you have an alternative. And that alternative is cheaper and also reliable. And we have standards to make it safe for use,” he said.

‎Okeke said SON has also taken steps to improve energy efficiency through the SON Mandatory Energy Labelling Scheme and Minimum Energy Performance Standards, known as SON-MELs.

He explained that the scheme will give consumers reliable information on the energy performance of electrical appliances.

He said many cheap bulbs consume more electricity over time, while energy-efficient products save costs.

‎”Efficiency means using less and achieving more,” he said.

He said SON is mandated to protect consumers by helping them make informed choices at the market.

He urged traders, market leaders and business owners to make quality and standards a priority.

‎”I urge you to make quality and standards a priority in your business. Buy, stock and sell only products that carry appropriate SON certification logos,” he said.

‎Okeke also said SON is transitioning from its old certification logo to a new, more visible logo to help consumers easily identify certified products.

‎He said the new logo, which simply reads SON, will improve product authentication and fight fake and substandard goods.

‎He announced that SON has launched a digital standards platform to make standardisation processes accessible online.

‎He said SON has also introduced a Product Authentication Marking System that allows consumers to verify genuineness of products with their phones.

He said trade facilitation processes such as SONCAP and import permits have been migrated to the national single window to support transparent trade.

Okeke said SON hosted the first African Quality Mark Award Ceremony to celebrate Nigerian companies that attained continental quality certification.

‎”Standards help you to have parameters, requirements and expectations. It also helps to create competition and build trust,” he said.

‎In goodwill messages, the National President of Female Farmers Apex Cooperative Society Ltd, Dr. Maimuna Abdullahi Habib, commended SON for promoting quality and sustainable development.

‎Habib, Nigeria’s first female Chief Veterinary Officer, said her office built the shed in Wuse Market where Fulani women sell nono, fresh cow milk.

She said solar-powered refrigeration and clean energy for agro-processing will help women reduce losses and increase incomes.

‎She urged SON and financial institutions to make quality clean energy technologies affordable to women farmers and traders.

Also, the Director-General of the Nigerian Copyright Commission, Dr. John Asein, represented by Chief Information Officer Mary Avoswahi Adegbile, felicitated with SON.

‎Asein said standards protect quality while copyright protects creativity, adding that piracy is an attack on investment and the rule of law.

‎The event featured a raffle draw where participants won washing machines and other consolation prizes.